Measuring Up
by Lydianna
Summary: Buffy and Giles have a heart to heart after the buffy/faith body swap in season 4. Buffy/Giles pairing or rather hints at it. Oneshot but may come back to this later to add more.


Author's Notes: OK, yes I have unfinished stories and it has been ages! This is my second attempt posting this since the copy and paste uploading doesn't seem to work on . I still don't have a working laptop, however iPad now has word! Yay! So this is just a little oneshot (that I may add to at some later date) just to get me back in the mood! I have also updated one of my other fics tonight. Hopefully I shall have an upload for a couple more this week too.

Disclaimer: I don't own BtVS, the characters of anything else recognisable and make no money writing this story.

Measuring Up

Buffy curled her feet up under her as she sat on the couch, she didn't look at her watcher directly.

"No one knew it was me…not even Riley. You believed me but you took a lot of convincing Giles." She said quietly. "But…Faith and Riley…I can't even…"

"No one was exactly prepared for a magical body switch Buffy." He sighed, sitting in front of her and removing his glasses. "When you, or rather Faith came over here I thought there was something strange but I thought it was just because everything with Faith had shaken you up a bit. I'm sorry, I didn't realise sooner. I…for what it's worth the minute you told me you knew I was me as a demon I knew it was you, but my training told me I had to be absolutely certain…especially since "bondage fun" certainly sounds like something Faith would say."

"Oh God, I really said that didn't I?" She groaned before dropping her face into her hands. He nodded with a small smile on his lips. "Don't suppose you want to explain what a stevedore is now that we're not in danger?"

"W-well…I-it's not the easiest thing to explain." He spluttered uncomfortably. "I think we can safely pretend the whole conversation never happened."

"No fair, I get to be embarrassed but you don't?" She pouted.

"Maybe one day." He replied, then smirked slightly. "When you can talk about bondage fun without dying of embarrassment, I shall gladly explain it to you."

"That's a bum deal." She mumbled but gave in.

"Not that I don't appreciate your company but was there something I can help with?" He asked.

"You were the only one that knew, without magic telling you. You trusted me, even if it took you a while you were able to recognise me in someone else's body. My Mom was with Faith for that first hour or so as me then for another few when she went back to change and didn't notice. I went to her first when I escaped to check she was OK and she wouldn't even get near me to listen no matter how many secrets I shouted at her. My own Mother….Giles you saw Faith as me for like ten minutes then me as Faith for three and that was enough." She said a tear slipping past her eyes that she quickly wiped away. "Riley…who claims to love me didn't even notice."

"Well, Buffy he isn't quite as experienced in matters of the supernatural as we are…" he said consolingly, patting her knee.

"He spent the whole night with her, he had sex with her Giles." She said angrily. "How on earth could he not notice?! Surely she didn't kiss him the same way? Make love the exact same way? I don't think so! Then when he saw me as Faith he didn't even blink, not even the slightest bit of suspicion so I didn't bother stopping to explain."

"Buffy, I'm sorry." He told her, moving for his perch on the coffee table to the couch next to her.

"So why you Giles? Why do you know me when my boyfriend doesn't? When my mother doesn't?" She sighed, slumping against his side sadly.

"For the same reason you knew me as a demon, we have a special bond you and I." He told her fondly. He dropped an arm around her shoulders and squeezed slightly. "Slayer and watcher, it's a very sacred partnership, despite the fact I was fired. We've had our differences but I like to think as a whole we work rather well together in our fight."

"We do." She agreed. "And if you remember I don't work for the council anymore either. We're both too good for them."

"Oh yes, that must be it." He chuckled and she joined him in laughter.

"I have to break up with Riley now don't I?" She sighed once their laughter died down.

"I rather think that's up to you." He blinked.

"Well…firstly now all I can think about is Faith with Riley…like when Angel acted bad…only I…I don't love Riley like I loved Angel." She said, startling herself with the honesty of her admission. "Secondly…he doesn't measure up anymore does he? I guess I just have to keep looking."

"Measure up to what?" He asked as she stood up and grabbed her jacket.

"You Giles." She shrugged. "Haven't you noticed that you are the only guy around showing us all that it isn't hopeless? That nice guys that are smart and brave and human and everything else actually do exist in the world. Unless they only exist in England…do you think there's a hell mouth in England I could guard instead? Aw well, Riley was a good guy and he was smart and brave…I'm getting closer. Later Giles!"

He stared after he as she left, he blinked in shock.

"Clearly he isn't that smart…" Giles murmured to himself thinking that the younger man should've cherished the ground that his slayer walked on. He couldn't help but idly wonder if she would ever consider giving up on her measuring up and consider the original but shook the thought away quickly, he was far too old for her.


End file.
